Why does understanding the body matter as much as understanding the brain , and how do soft, squishy biomechanics simplify the control problems that nervous systems must solve? Hillel Chiel extracts general principles from tongues, worms, and sea slugs. Subscribe for more from the Convergent Science Network podcast series. Hillel Chiel's research program rests on a foundational claim: evolution selects not for brains or bodies in isolation, but for the coupled dynamical system of brain, body, and environment. This means that understanding neural control without understanding biomechanics is like studying software without knowing the hardware it runs on. His work systematically demonstrates how mechanical properties of soft tissues constrain and simplify the control problems that nervous systems face , often dramatically. The tongue provides a viv ...